Lessons In Getting What You Want
by OK Pickett
Summary: Oswin Mielbois is a wealthy girl in a long line of witches and wizards who has long been passionate about magical study. In her first year at Hogwarts, bonds will be formed and trust will be built, but when Oswin takes her studies a step too far, will there be anyone left for her to trust? What is she willing to do to get what she wants?
1. Prats and Preparations

**Authors note:** _ **This chapter is going to be pretty short, mostly out of a desire to get some content out there and sort of dip my toe in the water as far as these characters go. I'd really like to know what you think about my original characters because I'm trying to improve my character writing skills. :) I'd also be interested to hear what you think is going to happen with the characters and the plot. I promise that my writing will get better (and the plot will become more interesting XD). I'll try to update within a week.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I own nothing owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

Oswin Magnolia Mielbois had known Draco for as long she could remember. Her family ran an enchanted produce farm and their parents did business together and attended the same rich people gatherings (which they were inevitably dragged to). Oswin didn't much care for Draco, but their parents insisted they be friends. Oswin suspected that this was backed by business interests more so than genuine fondness of the family. In fact, she could tell that her mother's friendly greetings and cheery smiles were simply a ruse to hide her distaste for the Malfoys. Nevertheless, her mother was ever the peacekeeper and did her best to be as kind and trusting towards her business partners as physically possible. This is why Oswin found herself, as unlucky people _often_ find themselves, in an uncomfortable social situation with two of the most annoying people on Earth as her mother went off to do errands.

Oswin was shopping for school supplies with Draco and her older sister, Monique. They were walking down Diagon Alley mostly in awkward silence, each of them obviously wishing they were somewhere else. Oswin was being drowned by the awkwardness of the situation, Monique was beyond irritated about her apparent role as babysitter, and Draco couldn't stand either of them. After they purchased their books and equipment, Monique was finally the one to speak up.

"Why don't we just split up and then meet at Fortescue's in like an hour?" There were grumbles of agreement at the rather obvious suggestion and, just like that, the three had zipped off in opposite directions.

Having already acquired her robes on an earlier date, all Oswin had left on her list were potion ingredients and her wand. She would have to wait to buy her wand though, as her parents wanted to be there when she got it. They were sweet like that and, although Monique grumbled at the annoyance, it was one of the things Oswin loved about them. She found it exciting that, in just two more years, it would be her brother, Caleb, starting at Hogwarts. Then, another seven years after that, it would be her little sister, Basil. It struck her that her baby sister would not get to go to school with any of her siblings. Whether that was a good or bad thing, she supposed, was up for debate.

Upon arriving at the apothecary, Oswin's spirits immediately began lifting. There was something exciting about potion-making that made her skin tingle. As she walked through the door, she could almost feel the potential in the room; she felt empowered by that potential. Bundles and jars of ingredients lined the long shelves and Oswin picked out several of her personal favourites. Technically, she only needed to bring basic potion ingredients, but she was able to convince her mother that she would find a wider array of ingredients crucial to understanding the assignments. This argument worked fairly easily. After all, shouldn't she do all she could to aid poor, average achieving Oswin in her studies?

Oswin arrived at the ice cream parlour first. This was to be expected as Draco still needed his robe and Monique was probably hanging out with her third-year friends. Approximately fifteen minutes later, Monique showed up carrying several bags of trinkets. Draco never came back, so they just assumed he had found his father wherever he was.

As Oswin and Monique waited for their mother to return, they got in line to buy ice cream. After they retrieved their ice creams, the awkward atmosphere from before dissolved into a relaxed banter, with some light hearted bickering sprinkled in. The tension brought about by the afternoon summer sun was melting faster than their ice creams. They had finished their ice creams by the time their mother came to get them.

"Hey, how'd it go?" She asked as she walked up to the pair of sisters, "Where'd Malfoy go?"

"Oh," Monique said flatly, "he left."

Their mother hummed disapprovingly, but simply said, "Well, he's probably off with his father." She then turned to Oswin and said with motherly excitement, "Oh, it's time to go get your wand… are you ready?"


	2. Wands and Whimsy

_**Author's Note:** **Whoops, this chapter is even shorter than the last one. I realised that this scene doesn't mesh very well with the next one so I decided to put it in it's own chapter even though it's only a few hundred words. I probably could add it to the last chapter, but I'm the kind of person who likes to put my mistakes on display. XD Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading this!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own anything that is owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

The dust in the quaint shop stirred as the small group entered. A smell like slightly damp wood and old books filled the air. The three witches were a crowd in the small space and Oswin tensed with discomfort and nerve. The silent room was taken over by scuffs and creaks as Mr. Olivander, who Oswin had met when Monique had gotten her wand, shuffled around the corner.

"Ah, the Mielbois!" He exclaimed fondly. "Yes, I remember you." He turned to Monique. "Fourteen and a half inches, cypress, unicorn hair core, and completely unyielding if I remember correctly."

"Yes, that's right."

"Well, of course," said Olivander. "I never forget a wand."

Oswin coughed uncomfortably and Olivander jerked around to look at her, as though he had forgotten she was there. "Oh, yes, Oswin. First year at Hogwarts I suppose?" Oswin didn't bother responding. "Well, best find you a wand than, eh?"

As a tape measure began measuring Oswin in various places (her height, the length of her forearms, shoulder to shoulder, shoulder to ear, etc.), Olivander browsed through several of the boxes on the towering shelves. He pulled out several, put several back, and eventually there was a wand in Oswin's hand. This wand was very quickly revoked after nothing proceeded to happen.

Oswin must have tried at least four wands. An oak, a pine, maybe two seperate spruce wands, until one wand didn't do nothing. A subtle warmth spread through Oswin as though she could feel the wand living and breathing.

"Ah, yes." This time it was Oswin who had forgotten Olivander was there. "That's the one then. Eleven inches, sycamore, phoenix feather core, quite hard."

Even for someone who grew up in a magical household, there's something exciting about getting a wand for the first time, and Oswin could feel it: a galaxy worth of potential, exhilaration, and power all lay in a calm anticipation in her hand. It was as if the world was open to her for the first time.

Oswin left the shop feeling her heart and spirits lift. Somehow she felt confident that no matter what happened, no matter what obstacles fell in her path, she would be ready.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:** **Chapter three is already a third done so it should be posted soon. :)** **Please tell me what you think (I would especially love to hear your predictions for what's going to happen with the plot and characters).**_


	3. Trains and Taboos

_**Author's Note: Woohoo a relatively normal length chapter (I think)! Please tell me what you think!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own anything owned by J.K. Rowling**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

Oswin pushed her long, wavy hair out of her face as she stepped onto platform nine and three quarters. She panted as she hauled her trunk and practically sprinted to keep up with her long-legged family. Her parents and her brother had come to see the two young witches off, although her younger sister was left with cousins.

As they neared the train, Oswin began searching for an empty compartment and Monique went to chat with some other Ravenclaw students she knew. All parental conversations about responsibility and being nice to others had already happened at home. Eventually, Oswin plopped down in an empty compartment and waved out of the window to show her parents where she was.

Oswin's mother, Janice Mielbois, was a tall, curvaceous woman with wavy, shoulder-length, brown hair. Her father, Samuel Mielbois, was slightly short than her mother. His tattooed arms and scruffy beard made him look like a sailor. The three had a light-hearted conversation about school that was full of "don't forget to"s and "I can't wait to"s and "did you remember"s. After a little while, they had to leave and Oswin settled back into her seat just as another first year girl awkwardly shuffled into the compartment.

The small, chubby girl looked mortified and was practically hiding behind her curtains of dark brown hair. The girl looked over at Oswin wearily.

"Uh … can I sit here?" The girl said in a voice that was barely over a whisper. Oswin gave a little nod and the girl clumsily sat down across from her. An awkward silence filled the compartment that both occupants were desperate to break but neither were sure how to.

"My name's Oswin Mielbois," Oswin said, in the most boring start to a conversation that has ever happened in the history of conversations.

"I'm Beatrice. Grey. Beatrice Grey," the girl responded. Oswin could tell that Grey was even more awkward in social situations than she was and searched as hard as she could for a topic of conversation.

"So … are your parents magic too?"

"No," Grey responded hesitantly. "You?"

"Yeah, my whole family's magic," Oswin said offhandedly. "I'm pretty familiar with transfiguration and potions if you ever need any help with that." Grey looked a little startled at this.

"Wait, did- do we have to know stuff already?" she stuttered.

"Oh, no," Oswin reassured her. "You'll learn everything you need to know once you get there. But, like I said, my whole family's magic. It ... wasn't exactly hard to get some early studying done."

Beatrice let out what must have been the breath she was holding in and slumped a bit in the bench, indeed looking reassured.

"I bet it was really exciting to get your wand when you didn't even know that magic existed," Oswin tried again. "If you don't mind me asking, what kind of wand do you have?"

"It's ... um … 10 ¼ inches of … spruce with a unicorn hair core," Grey half mumbled.

"Well then I don't think you should worry to much," mused Oswin.

"What do you mean?"

"Spruce wands typically choose confidant spell-casters," Oswin said. "So just believe in yourself I guess. Trust your instincts and all that. At the very least your wand thinks you can do it, or it wouldn't have chosen you."

This seemed to lift Grey's spirits as she participated more easily in the conversation. The topic turned to spells they wanted to learn and classes they were excited for. The friendly banter had continued to be light and fun when the sweets trolley came around. Beatrice politely refused but Oswin stocked up on Chocolate Frogs, Cauldron Cakes, and Pumpkin Pasties. Beatrice, who could hardly imagine that someone so small would ever be able to eat that many sweets, looked at Oswin a bit quizzically.

"They make for a good midnight snack if you're up late studying," Oswin explained. "You can have a couple if you like." Thanking her, Beatrice picked up a Cauldron Cake. The two also took out their real lunches (they had both brought sandwiches), and resumed their conversation over their food.

Eventually there was a knock on their compartment door and a young, round faced boy slid it open.

"Sorry," he said tearfully. "Have either of you seen a toad anywhere?" They both shook their heads but soon after he left, a girl with a mane of bushy brown hair came in to ask the same question.

"No." Oswin said a bit sharply. "If we had we would have said so the first time." The girl backed out of the compartment looking taken aback and a bit awkward. Beatrice looked at Oswin wearily, but Oswin ignored the look.

"Hey ... " said Beatrice, trying to rekindle the conversation. "I keep hearing about these 'houses' that people … feel really strongly about … what's the deal with that?" Oswin looked up at her, still bristling slightly but quickly calming down.

"There are four houses that all the students are sorted into: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin," Oswin explained. "They determine where you sleep, where you eat, when your classes are, stuff like that." A slightly confused look fell onto Beatrice's face.

"But if that's all it is," said Beatrice slowly. "Then why do people seem so up in arms about it?"

"Well," said Oswin hesitantly. "Part of it is competitive spirit run rampant. Houses compete for the house cup by accumulating points and the house quidditch teams compete for the quidditch cup - er, quidditch is a magic sport," Oswin added. "But it's also kind of historical. You see, each house is named after one of the four founders of Hogwarts. Salazar Slytherin had a … falling out with the other founders and left. A lot of nasty rumours surrounding that. Also …" Oswin trailed off.

"What?" asked Beatrice. "What is it?"

"There was this wizard about a decade ago," said Oswin. "A really bad wizard - a murderer in fact." Beatrice's eyes widened in shock. "He had a whole bunch of followers. They killed a tons of people - it was chaos. And… well… most of his followers had been Slytherins."

"Who was it?" Beatrice asked with a quiver in her voice.

"His name was Voldemort, but no one says it. They get real spooked if they hear it too, think it's bad luck. Better just call him 'you-know-who' so no one gets mad at you."

"But then … why did you say his name?"

"I'm not superstitious," said Oswin nonchalantly. "Besides, I thought you should know who people are talking about, if you do hear his name."

"What happened to him?" Asked Beatrice, suddenly eager for answers. "Did he die?"

"No one really knows," said Oswin mysteriously. "Last thing he did was attack this family that didn't support him. Killed the parents. Tried to kill the kid too, but he couldn't for some reason. After that he just … disappeared. You should really read _Modern Magical History_ to get caught up on stuff like this. I'll bet they have a copy in the library." Beatrice shuddered.

"I had no idea all this magic had so much … baggage," Beatrice said.

"It's just history," Oswin replied. "There have been plenty of bad stuff that happened in muggle history."

"I guess you're right," Beatrice sighed. "Still, I can understand not wanting to be in Slytherin: the house that _he_ was in." Oswin simply hummed in response. "If there are magic criminals … are there magical police too?"

"'Course there are," said Oswin. "We call them Aurors."

"There must be loads of jobs that only exist in the magical world," Beatrice said in awe. "What do your parents do?"

"My family runs a magical produce farm," said Oswin. "Enchanted and magical plants and herbs." Oswin cocked her head to the side a bit. "We also do some beekeeping. The farm comes from my mother's side, and we inherited the beekeeping business from my father's."

"Is there much need for enchanted honey in the wizarding world?" asked Beatrice.

"Maybe," said Oswin. "But it's really more about the wax for making candles."

"Oh." Beatrice blushed, feeling as though she should have guessed this.

"What do your parents do?" Oswin asked, mostly out of courtesy.

"My mum doesn't work, but my dad's a mail deliverer," said Beatrice.

"We just use owls to deliver post," Oswin mused.

Suddenly, a voice echoed through the train. "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately." In a bit of a panic, the two girls pulled on their long school robes as quickly as they could. Oswin crammed her pile of sweets into her trunk and the two filed out of the train with the other students.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over hear!" A man's voice boomed over the crowd. "C'mon, follow me - any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!" The massive man was easy to spot among the sea of eleven year olds and they all awkwardly stumbled after him down the dark, narrow path. "Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec."

Oswin didn't hear what he said after that. She had sucked in her breath in amazement just as the castle came into view. She had been to Malfoy Manor, and her own country home was nothing to scoff at, but Hogwarts was like a fairy tale. The beautiful towers loomed over the lake like watchmen and, even as a silhouette against the night sky, it was breathtaking.

Oswin and Beatrice clambered into a boat with two other girls and at Hagrid's command, the boats began to gracefully glide toward the castle. Oswin marveled at the beauty of the still lake as it shimmered in the moonlight, silent as death.

Everyone ducked their heads under a curtain of ivy and into a wide, hidden opening. The boats travelled along a dark tunnel until they reached what was like an underground harbour. The students carefully climbed out of the boats and onto the rocky shore. After a brief pause when the boy from the train found his toad, the group ascended a flight of stone stairs at the top of which stood a great wooden door.

"Everyone here?" The gigantic man asked, "You there, still got yer toad?"

The man raised a huge fist to the castle door and knocked three times.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _ **Please leave a review! I love hearing what y'all think because it helps me improve my writing and inspires me to write! :) I would especially like to hear your predictions for what's gonna happen next. What houses do you think my characters will be in? Do you predict any ships? Let me know! :)**_


	4. Sorting and Sarcasm

_**Author's Note:**_ _ **Oof this was finished way later than I wanted it to be. It's also pretty long (is it too long?). I think a pretty big chunk of that is the Hat song so... maybe it's actually okay? Idk, let me know what you think. As always, I would love to hear your feedback and predictions. Also, let me know if you think I'm writing Malfoy right.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own anything owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

Immediately after the man knocked, the door opened to reveal a stern-looking black haired witch in emerald robes. Oswin felt as though she could feel the witch's penetrating gaze.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said the very tall man.

"Thank you, Hagrid," responded the witch. "I will take them from here."

First, the group of eleven-year-olds were taken into the entrance hall, which was massive and magnificent in its own right. The crowd of students huddled close to each other, peering around and shaking slightly.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. She then began a bit of a preparatory speech for the first-years. She explained that they would all be sorted into one of the four houses before the feast and what the purpose of the houses was, including common-rooms, classes, house points, and the like. "The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few moments in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." Professor McGonagall looked at some of the students appearances with disapproval. "I shall return when we are ready for you. Please wait quietly."

On that note, Professor McGonagall left the group standing in the hall and a low rumble broke out among them. Many of the students seemed concerned that the Sorting Ceremony would hurt or require a lot of spells. Oswin wasn't worried. She knew it couldn't be that hard, whatever it was. After all, Monique had clearly passed it. Oswin turned a bit to comfort Beatrice, who looked particularly worried.

"Don't worry," she said. "They aren't gonna make you do anything hard. They know we're only eleven. Just remember about your wand." Beatrice stood a bit taller, tried not to shake as much, and nodded with determination.

Suddenly, several people around them screamed, causing Oswin to let out a little yelp in surprise. It didn't take long for Oswin to find the source of everyone's sudden extreme fright. Around twenty ghosts had just floated in through a nearby wall. Although, as a witch, Oswin should have been fairly used to ghosts, she still found them rather unsettling. They were a cold reminder of death and Oswin was not comfortable with that.

Two of the ghosts were in a rather lively discussion when one of them noticed the herd of eleven-year olds in front of them.

"I say, what are you all doing here?" the ghost who said this was dressed as though they had lived during the Elizabethan Era.

No one responded but the other ghost, who was called Friar based on Oswin's eavesdropping on the conversation they had been having, did speak up.

"New students," he said excitedly. "About to be sorted I suppose?" After a few students nodded he continued. "Hope to see you in Hufflepuff! My old house, you know."

At that moment, Professor Mcgonagall returned. She had the group form a line and they walked nervously into the Great Hall. As they were led into the Great Hall, Oswin sucked in a breath at the truly impressive charm on the ceiling. She could feel Beatrice doing the same beside her. Oswin had heard about it of course, how the ceiling was enchanted to look like the sky above, but to see it in person was a completely different story. There were also four long tables, one for each house, and a fifth at the head of the hall were the teachers were seated.

Professor McGonagall placed a stool in front of the first year students and placed on it a dirty, very old looking hat. Oswin wondered what it could possibly be for, realising that what she expected was often wrong. This, however, was proven

correct when the hat twitched - and started to sing.

" _Oh, you may think I'm not pretty,_

 _But don't judge on what you see,_

 _I'll eat myself if you can find_

 _A smarter hat than me._

 _You can keep your bowlers black,_

 _Your top hats sleek and tall,_

 _For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_

 _And I can cap them all._

 _There's nothing hidden in your head_

 _The Sorting Hat can't see,_

 _So try me on and I will tell you_

 _Where you ought to be._

 _You might belong in Gryffindor,_

 _Where dwell the brave at heart,_

 _Their daring, nerve, and chivalry_

 _Set Gryffindors apart;_

 _You might belong in Hufflepuff,_

 _Where they are just and loyal,_

 _Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_

 _And unafraid of toil;_

 _Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,_

 _If you've a ready mind,_

 _Where those of wit and learning_

 _Will always find their kind;_

 _Or perhaps in Slytherin_

 _You'll make your real friends,_

 _Those cunning folk use any means_

 _To achieve their ends._

 _So put me on! Don't be afraid!_

 _And don't get in a flap!_

 _You're in safe hands (though I have none)_

 _For I'm a Thinking Cap!"_

When the hat was done, the whole hall burst into applause. A low mumbling broke out again among the first years as they realized that all they had to do was put on the hat. For the first time, Oswin took a moment to think about what house she thought she would be in. Oswin had wondered, of course, but she had never put much serious thought into it. She couldn't think of a time when she had been particularly brave or loyal. She had only ever worked hard on subjects she cared about, she didn't feel very smart (especially in comparison with her sister), and, not having had plenty of lofty goals at the age of eleven, she found it difficult to predict what she might do to achieve them.

Professor McGonagall had began calling students up to try on the hat, but Oswin wasn't really paying attention. She was looking around the hall at the other students and thinking. Who did she want to be spending time with for the next seven years? Did it matter? Was it more important that she be comfortable or that she thrive academically? Would she be happy if her housed caused her not to thrive academically? How did she want people to see her and what did she want to do with her life? Does your house even really affect anything at all? Oswin was beginning to make herself nervous, even though she had found it so easy to comfort Beatrice. She almost wished they had to fight a troll or something. Oswin was vaguely aware of a "Granger, Hermione" being sorted into Gryffindor before and then "Grey, Beatrice" was sorted into Hufflepuff. More students were sorted, then Malfoy was sorted into Slytherin. Draco swaggered over to the table, causing Oswin to snicker at how pleased with himself he looked, and then finally -

"Mielbois, Oswin." McGonagall had called her name.

Oswin slowly walked up to the chair, grappling with the question of how much this ceremony might matter, or otherwise, how irrelevant it might be. As she sat down on the stood, the thoughts were still swirling in her head but just as the hat was slipping over her eyes, she came to a realization.

' _I want to prove,'_ Oswin thought, slightly bitterly, ' _that I can be just as smart and talented as my sister without being her.'_

"And you have quite a bit to prove _don't_ you?" said a voice in Oswins ear, making her start slightly. "Very passionate about what you believe in … naturally curious … yes I know just where to put you …"

"SLYTHERIN!" The hat screamed.

Oswin let out a breath. Somehow, she felt that this was right. As she walk to the Slytherin table to sit down, she knew that this meant she would be in the same house as Draco Malfoy, but she supposed she would just have to try to ignore him.

A few more students were sorted until one name caused whispers to break out all over the hall like a flood.

"Potter, Harry!" called Professor McGonagall.

Oswin knew exactly who that was. How couldn't she? She had heard his name her entire life. He was the boy Voldemort tried to kill. The night he vanished for good. Personally, Oswin couldn't see how the Potter boy could have caused this. He was just a baby after all. No, Voldemort must have been stopped because of something else. Still, it was interesting, fascinating even, to see someone she had heard so much about all her life here; in the same year at school as her.

There was a moment of anticipation as the school waited to learn what house Harry Potter would be in. Some people must have felt that what house he was in must have a grand impact on the future in some way, as they were all very intent not to miss a second of the process. Secretly, Oswin hoped Potter wouldn't be in Slytherin. There were enough people who thought they were greater than they were in Slytherin already. Oswin peered a few spaces down the table to look at Malfoy as she thought this. The moment seemed to stretch on for eternity, but finally the hat shouted -

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Immediately the Gryffindor table began cheering louder than they had for anyone else (which was saying something since the Gryffindors were a rambunctious bunch). They seemed very proud to have Harry Potter in their house, as though it was some big accomplishment on their part. Oswin couldn't help but roll her eyes.

Soon thereafter, the last of the students were sorted and the feast appeared before them. Oswin looked over at Malfoy again a nearly burst out laughing when he realized that he a the bad luck of sitting right next to the Bloody Baron. Malfoy must have noticed because he sent Oswin a pink-faced glare but didn't say anything. Oswin started piling food onto her plate, mostly vegetables, and idly listened in on the conversations around her. Predictably, many of the students were gossiping about Harry Potter. Others were scoping out the first years and warning them about the many pitfalls of going to school at Hogwarts.

"Obviously Peeves is a pain," said one. "He's the poltergeist that hangs out here."

"Yeah but Dumbledore is just as bad," said another, to a chorus of approving mutters. "If he could, he'd give ten thousand points to the Gryffindors just for breathing."

Oswin's attention was quickly turned back to Malfoy, who had begun explaining, very loudly, how he didn't think Harry Potter was such a big deal at all. Although Oswin agreed, she couldn't help but think how funny it was that _Draco Malfoy_ of all people could say anyone thought too highly of themselves.

"- all he did was get born really," Malfoy was saying.

"Ah, but the _Great_ Draco Malfoy," Oswin interjected, very sarcastically. "Now _that_ was impressive. I hear he popped out of his mum levitating and shooting fire out of his fingers. Don't even try, Malfoy. The way you talk about yourself you'd think you'd brought down you-know-who and all his followers yourself." Malfoy immediately turned pink. Oswin always knew exactly what to say to upset him.

"Like you can talk about _achievements_ ," Malfoy spat back, "everyone knows your family just leeches off of the actually successful people for everything you have." Oswin actually snorted at the irony of this statement (Draco didn't _work_ for anything; his wealth was inherited), but just rolled her eyes.

"Whatever," she said coolly, but secretly seething. The short conversation ended.

After a while, the plates cleared and the puddings appeared in front of them. Oswin quietly made her way through a slice of banoffee pie and sighed. She hoped she'd be able to get the courage to talk to people tomorrow. She was never good at socializing in group settings, which is why she often opted to simply listen in on other people's conversations. She'd gotten pretty good at being inconspicuous about it.

As Oswin was helping herself to some rice pudding, the students around her had begun talking about their families. How much money they had, how far back their lineage went, stuff like that. Oswin looked around the table and could see that various students had awkwardly fallen back from the conversation, though their lack of participation had gone unnoticed. If you paid attention, it was easy to tell, in a group of Slytherins, who doesn't come from a wealthy family, who isn't pureblood, and who feels very strongly about the former two groups.

Again, the plates cleared after some time and Dumbledore stood to speak. He warned them about the forbidden forest, the third floor corridor, and Mr. Filch's "no magic in the halls" rule. He also told them that Quidditch tryouts would be held in the second week of term.

' _Well, not doing_ that,' thought Oswin. She had never cared much for Quidditch.

After that they sang the school song and then shuffled off to their dorms after their house prefects. At this point, Oswin was so tired that the walk to the Slytherin common room down in the dungeons was all a bit of a blur. The next thing Oswin new she was sleepily pulling her school books and bag out of her trunk and changing into her pajamas. Then she crawled into bed and, after some time of lying there in dazed exhaustion, drifted off to sleep.


	5. Potions and Passions

_**Author's Note:** **I hope you like this chapter. I think there's more banter in this than the past chapter so hopefully you enjoy that. ;) In case you were wondering, this fanfiction is officially 1/3 done. XD Let me know what you think; I love feedback.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own anything owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

The next day, the castle was still abuzz spreading rumors about Harry Potter. Oswin was beginning to roll her eyes every time she heard his name. Sure, Oswin could see why it was a big deal. She just couldn't understand why people were _still_ talking about it. They _knew_ he was there. Isn't this old news?

That wasn't the only frustrating thing Oswin had found that morning; there was also the matter of getting to class. Even Oswin, who had a fairly excellent memory, could hardly keep up with the ever changing staircases, emigrating paintings, and constant … _distractions_ that Hogwarts had to offer. She eventually settled on trying to memorize the picture frames, since they didn't move.

One of the things Oswin especially didn't like was the caretaker, Mr. Filch. Filch was far too nosy for Oswin's liking. As much as she was interested in eavesdropping on other people's conversation, she couldn't say she was as thrilled about other people poking into anything she was doing.

The classes, however, were fantastic.

Although Oswin found filling out charts rather boring, she actually found Astronomy fairly relaxing. There was something picturesque about gazing at the night sky through a telescope at midnight. On the other hand, Oswin could tell Herbology would not be her best subject (which was ironic seeing as she came from a family of farmers). She understood it theoretically, but her fingers were a bit too weak and she was a bit too squeamish about bugs to do the practical parts as well as she might like. She did find the theory parts to be fascinating, however. She had always thought physical magic that you could see and put together was the most interesting.

The History of Magic class was boring. The history of magic was _not_. I those classes, Oswin ignored whatever Professor Binns was saying and took to pouring over her text book and related books she had found in the library, taking as many notes as she could.

Then there was charms. Oswin hated charms. She understood it. She knew how to say the words and do the wand movements. At that she was practically a pro. Actually getting something to happen on the other hand … that was a whole different story. Oswin often left her Charms class absolutely fuming, and practicing charms often ended with some unsuspecting inanimate object being hurled across the Slytherin Common Room by non-magical means. When she was practicing outside of the common room, Beatrice ended up having to calm her down from her volcanic rage.

Professor McGonagall turned out to be the Transfiguration Professor. Oswin hoped she wasn't biased against Slytherins like some people said she was because she was quite looking forward to this class. Oswin also hoped she would be better at this than she was at charms.

"Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts," was the first thing Professor McGonagall said to them on the first day of classes. "Any messing around in this class will send the perpetrator out of the door for good. You have been warned." Oswin certainly wasn't planning on messing around.

Then, Professor McGonagall transformed her desk into a large pig and back again. Light murmurs of approval spread through the class. The Slytherin students seemed wary about granting too much praise to the Head of Gryffindor House. Professor McGonagall seemed used to this. They spent the class making complicated notes, which Oswin was getting pretty good at, and trying to turn a match into a needle. By the end of the class, only Oswin and Malfoy had been able to make any difference to their matches.

Defense Against the Dark Arts turned out to be very similar to History of Magic as far as lesson style went (albeit significantly more garlicky). Oswin decided to just do what she had to in this class. It wasn't as though she would really need to know this stuff in the future.

On Friday morning Oswin ate breakfast alone again. As she ate her oatmeal, she penned a letter to her mother, figuring she would send it that afternoon, since she had it off. Oswin, in her clumsy, lopsided penmanship, wrote,

 _Mum,_

 _School is pretty busy so I don't think I'll be able to write every day like I said I would. I will try to write weekly though. How's Basil? I bet Caleb's anxious to start at Hogwarts. He should be. Things are great here. I bet he would like Defense Against the Dark Arts. He'd probably like flying to. I have my first flying lesson next Thursday and I'm already pretty nervous. Oh, I'm writing this during breakfast by the way (sorry for the tea stains)._

 _Funny enough, one of the hardest parts so far has been homework. My handwriting is so terrible that everything takes so long to write. Sometimes I can't even decipher my own notes! Charms is also a bit tough. I think I can figure that out though._

 _Of course the absolute hardest part is how much I miss you. And your baking. I'm lost without your muffins. Please send help._

 _Yours truly,_

 _Oswin_

After breakfast, Oswin slipped over to the Hufflepuff table to talk to Beatrice, ignoring several scathing looks.

"Hey, we have the afternoon off so I was thinking," said Oswin happily. "Study session after class?"

"Sure thing," Beatrice replied.

With a salute and twirl, Oswin left the conversation to skip off to potions class. Oswin was extremely excited for this class. As soon as she walked through the door she knew it would be her favourite class. Diagrams and potion ingredients of all kinds lined the walls.

There was just one problem. She had arrived a bit later than everyone else due to her catching up with Beatrice (perhaps her victory flourish took longer than she thought it had), and as a result she had to sit next to …

 _Maaaaaaaalfoy._ was the exact thing that Oswin though as she slowly sat down next to him.

Professor Snape, the Potions Professor, was a pale man with black hair and a hooked nose. He started class by taking the register and paused when he got to the name _Harry Potter_. Oswin, who at that point was thoroughly fed up with this nonsense, rolled her eyes a bit dramatically.

Then, Professor Snape, much like Professor McGonagall, gave a little speech about how difficult potions was a Oswin became determined to prove that she was _not_ a dunderhead. Professor Snape then proceeded to grill Potter on various simple potion facts, none of which he knew. Oswin was caught between feeling bad for Potter and quietly snickering under her breath. The situation was made even funnier by one Gryffindor girl who seemed _very_ eager to answer the questions that were not directed at her. She practically jumped out of her seat at one point.

Then, they were all put into pairs and were set to making a cure for boils. This was a very simple potion that Oswin and Draco, who was her partner of _course_ , were already very familiar with. Although Oswin didn't like Draco, she was glad he was good at potions or it would have been very difficult to behave civilly toward him throughout the entire class. Part way through, one boy had messed up his potion and had to be sent to the hospital wing, but the rest of the class went pretty smoothly.

After rushing up the stairs she made her way outside to meet Beatrice. They met in the same spot they had last time. It was outside so they could try to soak up the last of the summer sun.

The two girls spread out their books and Oswin pulled her rather ornate antique fountain pen. Beatrice had been confused as to why she wasn't using a quill the first time she saw it.

"My mum gave it to me before I went off to school," she had explained. "It was my Grandfather's. He was a huge fan of muggle stuff back in the day."

Beatrice pulled out her wand and brought her charms book close so she could practice some spells. Oswin took out some parchment and started working on her transfiguration homework, of which she had a lot of. Beatrice was taken aback when she caught sight of Oswin's books.

"Why do you have all of those?" she asked. "We only have one Transfiguration textbook."

"I want to get as much information as possible," Oswin replied. "I feel like I can do well in this class but I have to go above and beyond if I want to impress Professor McGonagall. Besides, the more advanced books are where all the interesting stuff is. This one," she pointed to the book she had been studying closely. "Is all about Animagi, and it's very detailed."

"What's that?" asked Beatrice.

"Oh," Oswin said. She had forgotten that Beatrice wouldn't know. "Animagi are witches and wizards who can change into a specific animal at will. Listen to this." She began reading from the book. "'The process of becoming an Animagus is complicated, dangerous, and extremely difficult. If completed successfully, it allows a witch or wizard to transform into an animal at will. The witch or wizard cannot choose what animal as it is based on the casters own true self.' Isn't it fascinating? I think I'd love to become an Animagus."

Beatrice did not seem particularly impressed.

"It seems to me," she said with a knowing smirk. "That you just like the sound of 'complicated, dangerous, and extremely difficult.'" The two girls shared a giggle and Oswin couldn't disagree.

"Well then," Oswin said in an over dramatic voice. "It is decided! I shall become an Animagi if it is the last thing I do!"

Beatrice snorted, rolling her eyes playfully, and began making her books levitate, to see if it would make reading them easier. It seems that her wand had chosen correctly. Although Beatrice was shy around people, she did seem to be a very confident spell-caster and was excellent at Charms.

"How do you do that?" asked Oswin in an exasperated way. "I just can't figure out how to make charms … you know … happen."

"Hmmm…" Beatrice thought about it for a moment. "You kind of have to be able to picture it - exactly what you want to happen. Don't just picture it… know it. Feel what it would feel like if the spell were to work. I don't know if that makes sense."

"Ugh, it makes perfect sense," Oswin groaned. "I'm so stupid. I can't believe I didn't think of that."

Oswin set aside her Transfiguration homework to work on her charms. She couldn't say that she was perfect, but in about half an hour she had finally managed to make her book levitate over her head (with Beatrice's helpful instruction).

They moved on to their Potions homework, which helped return Oswin's faith in herself. Beatrice, as it turned out, was not a fan of potions. This gave Oswin plenty of opportunity to help out Beatrice in return.

After a while they had finished most of their homework and went back up to the castle for dinner. Oswin left Beatrice and the two went off to their respective house tables. Beatrice went to sit next to her Hufflepuff friends and Oswin was left to sit virtually alone amid the other Slytherins. She opted to sit as close to Malfoy as possible, as she was finding that he was rather fun to annoy, and comforted herself in knowing that she still had plenty of time to make friends with the other Slytherins.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:** **Thank you for reading and thank you all for nearly one hundred views! Please leave a review telling me what you think. I would especially love to hear what you think about the characters and what your predictions are!**_


	6. Bread Rolls and Broomsticks

_**Author's Note:**_ _ **I'm sorry this is so late, I've been super bogged down with homework. DX I hope to write a whole bunch of chapters over winter break so I can upload consistently, at least for a while. ;) Anyway, I hope you like this chapter, it was both fun and exhausting to write. Fair warning, this one is rough for just about everyone involved.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own anything owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

Oswin wasn't sure how she felt about the upcoming flying lessons that day. Sure, she had a broom at home and she wasn't _bad_ at flying it, but she was concerned about a class that was entire based on physical ability. Not to mention a class where everyone would see if you screw up. If not for the fact that Oswin could see right through it, the constant bragging of the other Slytherins might have made her even more nervous. When they found out their flying lessons would be with the Gryffindors, Oswin's suspicions were confirmed; the bragging increased tenfold, essentially proving that it was all for show. On the morning of the first lesson, Malfoy was being completely insufferable.

"- should have seen the stupid muggle," he said, "well, _I_ of course managed to escape that blundering idiot." Oswin had been trying to ignore Malfoy, but this seemed to be a story about one of his many supposed run ins with helicopters while riding his broom.

Oswin tried to focus her attention on other things. Breakfast for example. She gazed around the table at the assortment of breakfast foods before piling some fried peaches onto a small stack of waffles. She continued to stare at the food, with little else to do. There were scones and toast, butter and marmalade…

 _I hate marmalade._ Oswin thought to herself. _Bread should not taste like oranges._

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

That afternoon, Oswin and the other first year Slytherins made their way out to the school grounds. Shortly after, the Gryffindors joined them and each of the students stood next to one of the twenty brooms that were laying on the ground.

"Stick out your right hand over your broom and say up!" called Madam Hooch.

Oswin, who had already done this several times before, quickly had her broom in her hand. Madam Hooch showed the students how to properly mount their brooms and they were soon prepared for take off.

But then, before Madam Hooch could even blow her whistle, one boy, presumably nervous, pushed of the ground and shot into the air. He flew higher and higher until he slipped off his broom and fell to the ground with a sickening _crack_. After a quick assessment, Madam Hooch warned the other students not to touch the brooms and rushed the boy off to the hospital wing.

It didn't take long after they had left for Malfoy to start mocking the boy who had fallen.

 _Honestly,_ thought Oswin, _Could you_ possibly _be more immature? Oh, a fat joke. How creative. And now you're gonna take his remembrall, because of course you are._ Oswin groaned when Potter just _had_ to step in. _Way to make sure you're the centre of attention for another week_. She thought.

A few minutes later and Harry-does-no-wrong-Potter successfully retrieved the remembrall from Malfoy. Immediately after Potter's feet hit the ground, Professor McGonagall came storming up to the group in a rage. Berating Harry Potter, she dragged him away to face some unknown punishment. Malfoy looked positively pleased with himself. Oswin strode over to him.

"Honestly, Malfoy you have the sense of a two-legged chair; at least brick walls are stable!" Malfoy was a bit too shocked at the sudden outburst to come up with a retort right away, and Oswin continued before he could interject. "I'm no fan of Potter or that other boy either, but you're like a fanatic! Sweet Lord! Did you rip your personality from a bully in a school boy novel?" The Slytherins stared at her, gaping. The Gryffindors were confused and intrigued by the Slytherin on Slytherin attack.

Malfoy took a moment to compose himself before saying, as though straining to keep himself calm, "You never have been one to mind your own business so it's not really surprising, but if you _could_ try to make less of a scene out of yourself, we would all appreciate it." At this point a symphony of "ooooh"s rose from the observing crowd. Oswin felt her face go red. The Gryffindors seemed very conflicted about who they were supposed to support in this conflict.

Oswin had hardly begun sputtering out a retort when Madame Hooch came back and dismissed the group, the incident having wasted most of the class anyway.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

Oswin was sitting in the library doing some transfiguration homework and trying to make good on her promise to become an animagus when Beatrice approached the table, picking at her fingernails and knitting her eyebrows together ever so slightly. Oswin was glad to see her timid friend, especially after that afternoon, but she was also concerned about how worried Beatrice looked.

"Are you alright?" Oswin asked. "You seem upset."

Beatrice slowly sat in front of Oswin, stared intently at her lap for a moment, then looked back up at Oswin with her big, sea foam green eyes. "It's… I guess it's not really a big deal…" she started. "It's just, well… okay… um…" Oswin nodded at her patiently. "I… I've been researching animagi and… if you really are I… I don't think you should be trying to do this." She rushed out the last part of her sentence. Taken aback, Oswin gave her a confused look.

"What? Why?" Oswin said, a bit more aggressively than she had intended. Beatrice flinched slightly.

"Well, I mean…" Beatrice said quietly. "It's really dangerous… you could get hurt really bad! And besides, its… it's illegal if you don't register and your parents would never approve so you don't really have the means…" She spoke in little stops and starts of rushed words. "You wouldn't want to get in trouble… you could lose your wand or… or…" she trailed off.

Understanding, Oswin made her voice calm. "You don't have to worry about any of that," she said reassuringly. "It's only dangerous if you do it wrong and I _won't._ " Beatrice began to tell Oswin how ridiculous this was, but Oswin interrupted her. "In any case, I just won't tell my mum. She barely notices what I do in my spare time anyway."

"But the law-"

"I'm not _hurting_ anyone," Oswin said, becoming defensive. "I should be allowed to improve my transfiguration and not have _the_ _law_ sticking its nose in it. And like I said before, I just won't get caught."

"You just won't…" Beatrice repeated. "I… I cannot believe you." Her voice shook. "You are so… _selfish_ that you don't even care about yourself!" She looked like it was taking all of her strength to get the words out.

"That doesn't make-"

"No, it _does_ make sense." It was Beatrice who interrupted Oswin this time. "You want to show that you're better than everyone else so much that you don't even care if you hurt yourself or anyone around you. Your family, me, the people who care about you." Beatrice and Oswin both looked around to make sure they weren't being too loud and then Oswin looked back at Beatrice, shocked and frustrated.

"I can take care of myself." Oswin said firmly.

"No. You can't. You're eleven."

"You just…" Oswin sputtered defensively. "You just… don't believe in me!"

"Oswin," said Beatrice, "I believe you are talented. And that's wonderful. But if keep doing this dangerous - and _illegal_ \- stuff, without even thinking… without even _caring_ … I can't be around you anymore. I care about you too much to support that."

"That's a load of crap!" said Oswin, as loudly as you can shout while whispering. "I thought Hufflepuffs were supposed to be loyal." She ignored the hurt look on Beatrice's face. "if you don't want to be my friend anymore - fine! I wanted to hang out with my _other friends_ more anyway." And with that statement, entirely intended to be hurtful, Oswin got up and quickly left the library, her books clutched in her hands.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

That night, all throughout dinner, as she was walking down to the common room, and as she was drifting off to sleep, the same thoughts kept running through Oswin's mind like a broken record.

 _Other friends? It was a stroke of luck finding this one. Not to mention that Malfoy has pitted most of the Slytherins against me and no one from the other houses would be too friendly with me. I knew what it was doing to Beatrice's reputation and I… she was only friends with me because she knew me before or because she thought I was… someone better. Dammit. Maybe I shouldn't have said… No. If I have friends, they have to be friends who trust me… or at least don't care what do... damn._

It took Oswin nearly four hours to fall asleep that night.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:** **Fun fact: I'm pretty sure writing this chapter made me hate every character whose name was mentioned in it. How about you? Please comment and tell me who you thought was in the right. I'd love to know what you think, be it praise, criticism, or predictions!**_


	7. Hunger and Headaches

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

The next morning, Oswin was forced to put up with Malfoy's incessant ranting about some thing Harry Potter had done. She knew that, ironically, not saying anything said rather plainly that Malfoy had won their little duel, but there was really nothing she could do about it. She was finding that she did not fancy the feeling of being embarrassed in front of a crowd one bit. Especially since it was technically her own fault. Oswin was still fuming, but now she was resigned to fuming in silence.

About a week after whatever Potter had done, Draco had found yet another reason to talk everyone's ears off about Harry Potter. Potter was sent his own broom and was allowed to use it for Quidditch. As much as Oswin really didn't want to sit through another lecture about how unfair this was and how this was blatant favouritism, she couldn't help but silently agree with Malfoy. For one thing, no one on a school Quidditch team needed a top-of-the-line broom. All it did was give one team an unfair advantage. For another thing, it was _against the rules_ for first years to have their own brooms. Shouldn't Potter have to struggle with the school brooms along with everyone else for at least a year? What made him so special? Oh, right. He's the boy who lived. He did something that he couldn't control when he was a baby, so they should give him all the best stuff that he didn't even earn. None of these points seemed very valid coming out of _Draco Malfoy_ , but they were true nonetheless.

That week, Oswin had kept a low profile in her classes. She didn't talk to her fellow students, she didn't ask questions, and she didn't even answer the teachers' questions, which was something she loved to do. She felt rather bummed out about what had happened with both Malfoy and Beatrice. When not doing homework, Oswin spent all her free time in the library. Without friends or other things to do, she devoted herself to researching animagi. She had found out that she would need a very particular type of moth, which she would need to do more research on. She also discovered that a lot of the process had to be done outside, so she opted to not start the hands on stuff until after winter, when it would be warmer and there would be more frequent lightning storms.

Oswin's streak of keeping to herself remained that day, even though it was Hallowe'en and most of the other students were being particularly chatty. She did her potions homework and she practiced spells and she made her feather levitate nearly a foot off the table during Charms. But she didn't talk. To anyone. Not to say "pass the snake fangs" or even "excuse me" when she shoved past other students as she was trying to leave the class. She was just silent and no one noticed.

 **Draco**

Draco Lucius Malfoy had known Oswin for as long as he could remember. Her family held less than traditional values, but they were also influential and they represented valuable assets, so their two families maintained relatively close business ties. He felt like Oswin was always there when he turned around. She would just appear out of nowhere and then act like Draco was forcing her to be there. She would throw insults and accusations at him like tidal waves and the waves would only calm if one of their parents entered the room. She was always good at never giving him enough room to think. Last week, Draco had decided that enough was enough. You couldn't just attack someone in front of a crowd and expect them not to bite back. It was things like that that made Draco wonder how Oswin possibly could have been placed in Slytherin.

But…

she _was_ a Slytherin, for whatever reason, and Draco could tell that something was seriously wrong. There were all kinds of conflicted emotions running through his head. He had always thought that he should be loyal to his house, and to be decent to decent people, but… but this was _Oswin_. This was the same annoying, nosy, mean girl he had been forced to grow up with. Why should he even try to help her? What had she ever done for him?

 _That's not how it works,_ said a voice in his head. _Humans are a resource. You won't get anything if you don't give anything._

But then, why _hadn't_ Oswin ever done anything for him? She _was_ a Slytherin, after all. Clearly, she didn't want his help, so he should just leave her alone.

Although…

Oswin had never been the most logical thinker. She had the ambition thing down, Draco would give her that, but she obviously needed to be shown what it meant to be a cunning Slytherin. As a fellow Slytherin, wasn't it his duty to help her succeed the way she could do best… and the way that would prevent her from making their house look bad again?

He just didn't know what to do. He wished she would stop sulking around the castle like a ghost. It was rather unsettling, and it was distracting him from things that were actually important.

For one thing, the blatant favouritism in the Gryffindor Quidditch team was ridiculous. Even if a first-year was better than the seeker they had before, they couldn't just send him out there with a top-tier broom in his first year! And then the Gryffindors had the gall to act like they had anything against bending the rules.

Plus, there was school… but maybe he wanted to be distracted from that. No. No. Draco was great at school; he had nothing to worry about. He had nothing to worry about.

 **Oswin**

The feast that night looked and smelled delicious. The aromas of spices and roasted vegetables made Oswin's stomach roar - she had missed lunch as she was busy studying in the library.

It's too bad she had barely taken a bite of sweet potato when the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher ran in, yelling about a troll in the dungeon. If you had asked Oswin a week ago how she thought she would have taken this news, she probably would have said horrified, panicked, or at least anxious. With dark circles under her blue-grey eyes and a deep rumbling emitting from her stomach, however, the only emotion Oswin could bother with was annoyance. Annoyance and hunger. Is hunger an emotion?

She trudged off to the common room with the rest of her house and was relieved to find that food had been sent up for them. It was nice to be able to eat dinner in the comfort of the common room. She'd have to figure out a way to do that in the future; she was running low on cauldron cakes.


	8. Deals and December

_**Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is shorter than usual. I kind of split it in half because I thought the transition to the next scene felt unnatural and it would've been REALLY long. On the plus side, I think this is the chapter where things get good. I'm actually excited for you to read it. XD**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I own nothing owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

The long-awaited Quidditch match came and went without a passing thought from Oswin. She spent the entire match in the library. She had already finished all her homework, and she wanted to learn as much as she could about animagi. She had read books with detailed descriptions of the process of becoming an animagus, examples of animagi gone wrong, precautions to avoid mistakes, and even how animagi had affected magical history. It was all she could think about.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

One mid-December morning, Oswin found herself gazing through the library window at several feet of snow on the grounds of Hogwarts. A lump caught in her throat as she thought of winter back home. She could almost feel the snow from snowball fights stinging her cheeks and taste her Grandmother's signature hot cocoa. Her bones and muscles began to ache as if her lack of sleep was catching up to her. Her head pounded and her hands shook. She felt her chest constrict and she shut her eyes tightly as tears rolled down her face. She had never been lonely before.

How she longed to be at home. Oswin shook herself and took a deep breath. It would be just one day before she would get to go home. She decided to write to her mother again.

 _Mum,_ she wrote.

 _Thanks again for the baked goods. They've really helped me get through my homework. I think I have permanent grooves in my fingers from writing so much though. Plus, everyone is always so loud in the common room and even the dorms! Late night studying has been a struggle because of it. I don't mean to complain though. I'm learning loads and all my classes are really interesting. I think I'm doing well in potions. Transfiguration too._

 _I'm so excited to see you and everyone else again. I hope things are going well at home. I miss you all dearly and I'm looking forward to Christmas, of course. You don't need to write back seeing as I'll be home soon._

 _Yours truly,_

 _Oswin_

Oswin sighed and went up to the owlery to send off her letter.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

Oswin hauled her trunk onto the Hogwarts express and shuffled along the corridor until she found an empty compartment. She plopped down onto the seat with a sigh and silently hoped no one else would enter, though she realized that was unlikely. After about twenty minutes, the train left the station, remarkably granting Oswin's wish. Almost. Only a few minutes after the train started moving, the door slid open to reveal the unwelcome face of Draco Malfoy. Oswin was surprised to note that he didn't have any of his cronies with him. He quickly shut the door and sat across from her. Oswin opened her mouth to protest, but Malfoy interrupted her.

"We need to talk." His voice conveyed irritation, but it was clear he was trying to force it into kind of a stern civility. Not able to do much else, Oswin chose to play along.

"About what?"

"Seeing as how the two of us are in the same house now, it seems impractical for us to be fighting all the time." Oswin glared at Malfoy skeptically. "I'm serious. Slytherins are supposed to have each others backs. No one else will. Besides, it's clear that your Gryffindor upbringing has left you unable to behave like a proper Slytherin."

"I don't think I need to be an inbred ass to be a proper Slytherin, thanks," Oswin said with a mock sweetness. A scowl appeared on Malfoy's face.

"You are just the-" he took a deep breath and painfully forced his face to appear as calm as possible. "What I mean is that, ambitious and resourceful as you may be, you lack subtlety. You can't go around acting like a freak every time someone gets on your nerves." Oswin's glare became more intense, but she didn't say anything for a moment. She thought, for a second there, she almost heard a compliment.

"Obviously, you think you're doing me some kind of favour by telling me this," Oswin said slowly. "So what exactly is it that you want from me?" Malfoy leaned in slightly, as though he was worried someone might hear what he was about to say.

"I know you're up to something… there have been rumors." Oswin's eyes widened slightly. "I've heard you have something big and not exactly legal in the works. Whatever it is you're doing… I want in."

"And in return I'm supposed to be getting what, exactly?" Oswin asked coldly.

"I would teach you how to not be a social disaster," came Malfoy's blunt response. Oswin thought for a moment.

On one hand, having Malfoy teach me anything would be an embarrassing mess. On the other hand, if he knows that I'm working on something illegal he might report me if I don't let him join in. Plus, he might be suspicious if I let him know what I'm doing without wanting him to "help" me. Oswin grumbled before speaking again.

"Well, I suppose if imposing your comfort zone on me would really make you feel better about your depressing life," she stretched out her hand. "It's a deal." Malfoy rolled his eyes, but shook her outstretched hand nonetheless.

"Deal."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: What do you think? Are you excited? I'm excited. I can't wait to write more of Draco. This means that the real conflict can actually start. Anyway, I would really appreciate it if you would leave a review. I'm really interested to hear your opinions and predictions.**_

 _ **Big thanks to Dashti-the-dramione-shipper for beta-reading this chapter and the last one, as well as LunaStar07 for helping me with the previous chapter as well.**_


	9. Christmas and Contrivances

_**Author's Note: Boop boop I'm back! Sorry I haven't updated in such a long time. Grade 12 homework gets really crazy, especially when you're actually trying to pass. In any case, I hope you enjoy this chapter. It is 100% my favourite of the ones I've written so far. I would LOVE to hear what you think about it!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own anything that belongs to J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

As soon as she got off the train, Oswin ran to greet her parents and enveloped them in a warm hug. She, Monique, and her parents got into their turquoise Volkswagen Golf and the conversation on the ride home naturally turned to Hogwarts.

"What's the Slytherin common room like?" Monique asked. She had only ever seen the inside of the Ravenclaw common room and their mother had been in Gryffindor. Their father had attended Beauxbatons.

"It's pretty cool," Oswin replied. "It's under the lake, so sometimes the giant squid goes past the window, which is neat."

"The Ravenclaw common room is nice, but it's _so_ high up." Monique shuddered a little at the thought. Oswin couldn't hold back a small chuckle. "Hey, don't laugh at me!" Monique protested lightheartedly. "You really _are_ a Slytherin." This caused Oswin to burst into a fit of giggles. Their mother threw their father a meaningful glance from the passenger seat. "Honestly, Oswin, you are _way_ too easy." Monique laughed. Eventually, Oswin's laughter calmed and they were able to continue their conversation for the rest of the ride home.

A little while later, they pulled up the long driveway of their country estate. Farming for magical purposes was very lucrative, and their mother's family had been doing it for generations. Their home was a three-story mansion made of stone that had stood on the grounds for at least a hundred years. It was surrounded by a massive garden full of flowers, fruit bushes, and fountains. There were canopied paths at several strategic locations leading to an open area for grilling, a peaceful grove, and the fields themselves. In the winter, it was all covered in a glistening white blanket and sparkling ice crystals flowed from the fountains instead of water.

The group entered the house, tired after the relatively long drive. Pretty soon it was supper time and the six Mielbois were sitting around the ebony dining table to an elegant yet cozy alfredo fettuccine. As they were beginning to eat, Oswin's mother turned to face her.

"So, Oswin, did you get any Latin work in?" Oops. Oswin thought. She had been so consumed with her magical studies that she had completely neglected what her parents called her "compulsory extracurriculars".

"Er, I kinda forgot," Oswin said awkwardly. "I'll write myself a note to remember for after the holiday… maybe I'll write my study notes in Latin." Her father nodded and hummed.

"Good idea," he said thoughtfully.

"I want the four of you to be on your best behaviour at the Malfoy's Christmas Eve party tomorrow," Mrs. Mielbois said sternly. "That means no starting a row over the Malfoys'... past." She sent a pointed look in Monique's direction, who opened her mouth to protest before her mother interrupted her. "And you," she looked at Oswin now, "will _not_ pester Draco." Oswin simply hummed in response, but Monique looked as though she was about to explode.

"How can you expect me to say nothing while the Malfoys go around pretending to be all _reformed_ when we all know they're really-"

"We don't know that they're really _anything_ ," her mother said sharply. "You know I would never be associated with them if we did."

"And it's hardly as though we're best of friends," Mssr. Mielbois reasoned. "These parties are just formalities." Monique grumbled in a way that suggested she only half agreed with the sentiment.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

The Mielbois family arrived at Malfoy Manor on the evening of Christmas Eve. The grand foyer and parlour were done up with grand decorations of white and silver. Oswin had always felt awkward in this setting, as she didn't have anything in common with the other children there. She usually ended up bickering with Draco and then slipping out of the party to pace through the halls when annoying Draco became boring. That night, however, she knew she had to stick it out at least a little longer, what with her new begrudging aquantainship with Draco requiring her to feign civility.

The night passed at a gruelingly slow pace. The adults made polite, meaningless smalltalk and Oswin and Draco spent most of the night trying and failing to find something they had in common. Eventually, Oswin grew tired of the pointless conversation and decided it would be much more productive to take it away from the prying ears of the adults. Oswin grabbed the sleeve of Draco's robes and quickly pulled him through a nearby door, with only a minor yelp of protest. Once they were out of the room, Draco shook off Oswin's hand and glared at her.

"What are you doing?" he asked irritably.

"You can't tell me you were enjoying that. Besides, I thought you were suddenly so interested in me," Oswin said mockingly. "Didn't we have an arrangement?"

"I had thought it would be obvious that this isn't really the right place for that."

"Which is why we left. Come walk with me and we'll really talk. Or would you rather go back to that extraordinarily interesting party?" Draco looked back and, for a moment, Oswin could tell he was anxious. "No one will miss us. I've done this loads before," Oswin assured him. Begrudgingly, Draco stepped toward Oswin and the pair began walking through the long corridors of Malfoy Manor.

"So, what _is_ it that you're working on?" Draco said, sounding genuinely curious.

"I've been studying animagi for a few months now," Oswin said coolly. "I think I can start the actual process now. I just need the ingredients."

"That's pretty dangerous," Draco said in his slightly mocking tone. He was smirking, and there was a mischievous glint in his eye. "I guess you'll need help procuring these ingredients." Oswin opened her mouth to protest, but Draco interrupted her. "You can't exactly wander into Slug and Jiggers to buy mandrake leaves and African caterpillars without anyone raising an eyebrow."

"Well…" Oswin said awkwardly. She supposed she hadn't quite thought that part through enough. "Fine. You can help."

"I thought you might come around," Draco said smugly.

"Is it time for you to lecture me now?" Oswin asked sarcastically.

"Ah, I'll just do that periodically throughout all our interactions," Draco said, ignoring her tone. "It'll stick better that way."

Oswin and Draco wandered around chatting about transfiguration until it was nearly time for Osiwn to leave. They snuck back into the room just as everyone was beginning to say their parting words and no one noticed them as they slipped through the back door. Almost no one, that is. Monique caught a glance of Oswin and Draco returning and glared when they briefly made eye contact. When she quickly turned and left the house, Oswin and Draco shared a concerned look, exchanged awkwardly polite farewells, and then Oswin left with the rest of her family.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

When the Mielbois family got home late that night, Monique discreetly pulled Oswin into the kitchen.

"I saw you with Draco Malfoy at the party," Monique accused.

"So what?" Oswin said dismissively. "I was supposed to be civil wasn't I?"

"Oh, _civil_ , was that it? Going off where no one can hear? Sneaking back into the room at the last second? What were you talking about?"

"That's none of your business."

"None of my business?" Monique raised her voice but quickly lowered it again. "Don't you realize what kind of people the Malfoys are? Didn't it occur to you at all that we have _cousins_ who are muggles?"

"This has nothing to do with that," Oswin hissed.

"Oh really?" Monique scowled. "You join Slytherin _and_ suddenly you're all up close and personal with blood purists? I think it has everything to do with that."

"How could you say that? I am your sister! I'd think if anyone would trust me - and it's hardly as though Draco's _murdered_ someone - but that's not the point."

"What's the point, then?"

"Whom I associate with doesn't concern you."

"Whom you 'associate with'? Who are you? Is the Malfoy brat the one who gave you the idea to sneak around, breaking the law?"

Oswin looked her sister straight in the eye. "What are you talking about?"

"People talk, Oswin. Hogwarts isn't that big. I know you're up to something."

"You're wrong."

"Maybe. Maybe it is just a rumor. Either way, I'll be keeping a much closer eye on you."

"Good to know." And with that, Oswin spun on her heel and stomped off to bed, her mind racing.

 _Great. Now I have to worry about my sister following me around everywhere. How am I going to find somewhere to work where no one can see me? I have a bad feeling I'll have to ask a certain blonde cretin for help._

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

Oswin woke up one Christmas morning exhausted but excited. Christmas in her family was always magical. The entire family gathered at the top of the stairs so they could go to the tree together. The large pine was covered in ornaments, most of which were sentimental, homemade, or both. The children each sat in an armchair and waited as their parents made coffee. Then their parents watched as they made their way through their stockings. They were filled with sweets of every kind and little toys. Basil pulled out bubbles that would form the shapes of different animals, Caleb got a little toy dragon that actually flew around, Monique got nail polish that changed colour with the mood of the wearer, and Oswin got a pocket edition of The Tales of Beedle the Bard.

After they'd finished with their stockings, they moved to the kitchen table for breakfast. The smell of warm, fresh baked cinnamon buns wafted through the air. The scent set spirits soaring with memories of this long-standing family tradition. After breakfast, the family went back to the tree to open presents.

Their grandparents had sent them all souvenirs from China, where their Papa was teaching History of Magic and their Nana was working as a mediwitch. From their parents they had all gotten knit sweaters. Monique's and Oswin's bore their house crests. Basil got a toy broom and Caleb got his first real broom.

"Woah!" Caleb exclaimed when he pulled the broom out of its wrappings. "I'm gonna fall off this!" Mrs. and Mssr. Mielbois chuckled.

Monique got a kit for making enchanted jewelry with beads, along with a small elegant barn owl.

She squealed with joy when her parents gave it to her.

"You're responsible enough now to take care of her," her mother said gently.

Oswin opened one of her presents and, to her surprise, it was a typewriter.

"You always complain about how long it takes you to write your homework by hand," her father said. Oswin couldn't contain her squeaks of excitement.

"Thank you so much!" she cried. Finally she wouldn't have blisters all over her fingers by the end of the night. "But, isn't a typewriter too loud to do my homework with?" Her mother smiled coyly.

"Open your last present."

It was a wooden briefcase. Oswin opened it and gasped. There was a small room inside.

"It's not a huge one," her father said. "Just a little space for you to get your homework done in peace when you're at school."

Oswin looked up at her parents with glee in her eyes.

"I won't have to haul that huge trunk onto the train anymore!" _Not to mention I won't have to worry as much about Monique catching on to what I'm doing._ _Oh, Mum and Dad, you always know what I need._

* * *

 ** _Author's Note:_** ** _What do you think? Are you excited? I'm excited. I want to hear your predictions so bad. I'm pretty sure you're not gonna guess what happens next. Also, what do you think about Draco? Do you think I wrote him accurately? I NEED FEEDBACK! and it has to be YOURS specifically._**

 ** _Also, thank you so much to Dashti-the-dramione-shipper for beta-reading for me yet again. You're so much help and I know this fic would be significantly worse without you. :)_**


	10. Quidditch and Queries

_**Author's Note: So this is gonna be kind of a short chapter. I had to work a lot with my timeline to make sure everything made sense. Please remember to leave a review as feedback is incredibly helpful for improving my writing and it helps motivate me to update. In any case, please enjoy!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I own nothing owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

Oswin sat with Draco Malfoy and his friends on the train back to Hogwarts. She had had to sneak past her sister to avoid getting another lecture and increasing her suspicions, but it was worth it to not have to sit with complete strangers. On the other hand, sitting with Draco's friends was almost as bad. Most of them were dumb as bricks and none of them were quite sure how to act around her. What must have seemed like a sudden and unprovoked shift in the relationship between Draco and Oswin had caused awkward silences all around as his friends attempted to regain their bearings.

Draco and Oswin started going to the library once a week to take extensive notes on the procedure of becoming an animagi as well as the safety precautions. They wrote everything in Latin so that most, if not all, of the students would not be able to understand it. They were almost caught obviously studying how to complete the process by a round-faced Gryffindor boy, but Draco had managed to scare him off fairly easily.

They couldn't check the books out of the library (due to the risk of being suspected) but once they had their notes they took them into Oswin's case so they could plan how to procure the ingredients.

"We'll want to spread out the timing for taking each ingredient," Draco was saying. "We also can't take any of them from the same place. It'll take longer but-"

"Not getting caught is more important," Oswin finished. "And on the subject of not getting caught…"

"Yes?"

"Someone already knows."

"What?" Draco looked alarmed.

"No specifics, but according to my sister, there's been word going around," Oswin said. "It seems that rumor you heard is not contained to Slytherins."

"Do you know who started it?" Draco was speaking in a slightly rushed voice. "If we can get back to the rumor's source…" Draco breathed in deeply to calm himself. "We can put a stop to it before it gets out of control."

"Yeah, I think I know, but we need to be sure first," Oswin said. "There's a Hufflepuff first year, Beatrice Grey, who knows I've been trying to become an animagus."

"I'll see what I can find on her."

 **Draco**

It didn't take long for Draco to find Grey, but he knew it would be harder to find the information he needed. He walked past her in the halls frequently when she was talking with her friends, but there was no guarantee they would ever say something that would be useful to him. One thing was clear though; it was definitely Grey who had started the rumor. She occasionally brought up the issue to her friends, which she certainly wouldn't have done if this was merely something she had heard in passing. Draco knew that if he was going to keep her quiet, he would have to step up his game. He also knew that he couldn't try to threaten or bribe her. There was too much risk of her going to a teacher. Then one day, Draco overheard a conversation between Grey and her friends that piqued his interest.

"How long had your father been working for the muggle post?" Her friend had asked.

"About ten years," came Beatrice's response.

 _Of course._ Draco thought. _I can't threaten her directly, but if I can find something that could incriminate one of her family members… this could be easier than I thought. The only question now is: how do I find the names of Grey's parents?_

 **Oswin**

Draco huffed in frustration. "This is getting to be way more complicated than it should be. Why did you go and tell that mudblood about what you were doing?" Oswin sent him a scalding look but said nothing. "What are we supposed to do? There's no chance in hell of us sneaking into the headmaster's office."

"Well, obviously," Oswin said irritably. "Don't be thick." She paused uncomfortably. "Look, I'll figure something out. In the meantime, you know, drop hints that you know something's going on with someone she knows. If we imply we know more than we do…"

"She'll stop until she can find out what we do know," Draco finished her sentence. Draco shifted on his feet. "I have to go," he said quickly. "I'm meeting Crabbe and Goyle to go see the Quidditch match."

"See you later then." Oswin pulled her homework out of her bag and began labeling her star chart, not paying any mind to Draco as he left.

* * *

 ** _Author's Note: Thank you for reading and, again, please leave a review. I genuinely appreciate both positive and negative comments._**

 ** _Also, I want to thank Dashti-the-dramione-shipper for yet again being an amazing beta reader. :)_**


	11. Decisions and Dragons

_**Author's Note: I'm sorry I've only be posting around once a month lately. My next two chapters will come much quicker. I hope you enjoy this chapter because I really enjoyed writing it. :D Please leave a review telling me what you thought (positive and negative are both appreciated) as well as what you think will happen after this!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I own nothing owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Draco**

The increasing amount of homework was making it difficult for Draco to come up with a plan for his situation. Exams were ten weeks away and he had to figure something out before the summer holiday. Draco was leaving the great hall from breakfast one morning when he heard something that drove all thoughts of Beatrice Grey out of his head and made him stop in his tracks.

"How many times in our lives are we going to see a dragon hatching?" Malfoy cocked his head towards the sound of Weasley's voice. It was Granger's that came next.

"We've got lessons, we'll get into trouble, and that's nothing to what Hagrid's going to be in when someone finds out what he's doing -"

"Shut up!" Potter interrupted her, having noticed Draco, but he had already heard enough. Draco left the Great Hall and hurried through the halls of Hogwarts. He had to get to Professor McGonagall's office before class started.

 _Potter's in for it this time,_ Draco thought. _Not even he would be able to get away with harboring a dragon._ When he approached the door of Professor McGonagall's office, however, he heard voices coming from inside. Draco became still and practically stopped breathing so he wouldn't be heard listening from outside.

"I will have to write to your parents, Ms. Grey," the Professor was saying.

 _It must be my lucky day,_ Draco thought. He listened closer. There was a light scuffling of papers. The scratch of quill on parchment. More scuffling. A little more scratching. And Draco opened the door. Professor McGonagall, who was still writing on the back of an envelope, looked up quickly.

"What do you think you're doing Mr. Malfoy?!" she asked sharply.

"Er…" Draco cast his eyes down from the Professor's face, as though embarrassed. In doing so, he caught the names written on the envelope. _Derren and Amelia Grey._ "Sorry, I didn't know you were with someone. I'll… come back later." With that, Draco quietly slipped out through the door, leaving Professor McGonagall's stern face behind him.

During morning break, Draco glanced out the window just in time to see the three figures of Granger, Weasley, and Potter running down to Hagrid's hut. He left the castle and watched as they descended the slope. Once they had entered the small building, Draco slowly sneaked after them. Upon arriving at the front door, he chanced a look through the window. It didn't matter if the people inside saw him; it wouldn't change what Hagrid was harbouring. There was a black baby dragon just sitting on Hargrid's wobbly kitchen table. Hermione asked Hagrid something and when Hagrid looked up to answer her, he and Draco momentarily locked eyes. Hagrid leapt to his feet and ran to the window, but Draco had already turned on his heel and was running back to the castle. _Now that I know for sure Hagrid has a dragon in his shack, I can find a way to wipe that smug grin off Potter's face._

After classes that day, Draco hurried off to the Slytherin common room. He plunked himself down in a chair in the corner of the room and pulled out a quill and some parchment. He needed to write to someone who could help him with his Grey problem and wouldn't ask questions. He had a cousin in London who would work nicely.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

Two weeks later, Draco caught wind that Weasley had landed himself in the hospital wing. On his break, he decided to pay him a little visit. The moment he entered the hospital wing, Madame Pomfrey came down on him like a hawk.

"What are you doing in here?" she snapped at him, frustrated by his coming in and potentially disturbing her patients.

"I just need to borrow one of Weasley's books," Draco said. "I heard he was in here."

"Very well," Madame Pomfrey huffed. "But make it quick."

Draco walked past her and towards the occupied bed. He pushed past the curtain and found Weasley laying with his hand wrapped in bandages. Weasley opened his mouth to cuss Draco out, but he was interrupted.

"Oh don't get your knickers in a twist, Weasley," Draco said, smirking. "I'm only here to see how you're doing after your unfortunate _accident_." He punctuated his last word by patting Weasley's bandaged arm, causing him to hiss in pain and sharply pull away.

"And what are you really doing here?" Weasley growled through gritted teeth.

"We both know it wasn't a dog that bit you. I bet Madame Pomfrey would like to know-"

"Don't you dare!"

"Why not?" Draco put on a look of mock concern. "Don't you want her to make it better?" He turned as if to leave. "I think I'll just-"

"Stop it." Draco turned back to Weasley, grinning in satisfaction.

"Fine, fine, I'm leaving." Draco walked over to Weasley's bag, which was lying on the floor beside his bed, and took out a random book. "But I'm taking this. I told Madame Pomfrey I had to borrow one of your books." Then Draco left, leaving Weasley to grumble behind him.

 **Oswin**

Oswin was working on potions homework in the library when Draco slid onto the chair across from her, a wicked grin on his face.

"What's got you looking so… I don't know... evil? What are you doing with your face?" Draco glared at Oswin before rolling his eyes and pulling out a battered looking transfiguration textbook. Oswin raised an eyebrow.

"I took this," Draco said, holding up the book, "from that Weasley brat in our year. It had this in it." He pushed a piece of parchment towards Oswin. It read:

 _Dear Ron,_

 _How are you? Thanks for the letter - I'd be glad to take the Norwegian Ridgeback, but it won't be easy getting him here. I think the best thing will be to send him over with some friends of mine who are coming to visit me next week. Trouble is, they mustn't be seen carrying an illegal dragon._

 _Could you get the Ridgeback up the tallest tower at midnight on Saturday? They can meet you there and take him away while it's still dark._

 _Send me an answer as soon as possible._

 _Love,_

 _Charlie_

When Oswin had finished reading the letter, she looked up at Draco expectantly.

"So?" she asked.

" _So_ ," Draco said in an exasperated tone. "We could catch them in the act! Take Potter and his _friends_ down a few pegs. And that Weasley deserves it. He attacked me at that quidditch game you know." Oswin closed her potion book, put down her pen, and sighed.

"Here's what I think," said Oswin. "I think that you really want to be friends with Harry Potter." Draco opened his mouth to protest, but Oswin interrupted him. "You want to be friends with him because he's famous and it would make you look good, but he doesn't like you. And that's embarrassing. So you're taking it out on him and his friends to avoid facing the fact that you just aren't that likable. You're full of shit and it's stinking up the library so unless you have a solution to _our_ problem, just leave." Draco's ears were tinged pink as he shoved the book into his bag.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Draco crossed his arms but didn't leave. Oswin reopened her book. "And I actually do have a solution."

"Hm?"

"For our problem." Oswin's head snapped up to look at him and she pushed her book to the side.

"What do you have?"

"The names," Draco said, speaking more comfortably again. "I sent a letter to one of my cousins a couple weeks ago asking him to find something on them." Oswin was a little irritated by the fact that Draco hadn't told her when he sent the letter, but she was far more interested in something else.

"And? Did he respond?"

Draco smirked.

"Yes."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: Woot woot very suspenseful. Again, please remember to leave a review letting me know what you think. The next chapter should be up in 1 - 2 weeks and the one after that will be up November 4th! Big thanks to**_ **Dashti-the-dramione-shipper** _ **and**_ **LunaStar07 _for being such great beta readers for this chapter!_**


	12. Crime and Punishment

_**Author's Note: I'm sorry this chapter is so late. The next one will still come out today, like I said it would, probably in an hour or two. Anyway, please let me know what you think about this chapter. I'm really happy with how it turned out.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I own nothing owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

After reading the letter Draco received from his cousin, Oswin began to feel significantly more relaxed about their Grey problem. Unfortunately, there was now a new issue that she had to decide whether or not to address. Draco had refused to let go of the fact that Potter was trying to get rid of an illegal dragon. Normally Oswin would just leave him to his antics, but he was so preoccupied with his grand plan to catch Potter in the act that he was being very unhelpful in planning how they were going to achieve the goal they actually shared: getting Grey to stop spreading rumors.

"Figure it out yourself," Draco said on Friday afternoon, while they were studying in the library. "The rumors are about _you_ after all."

"Seriously?" Oswin hissed at him. "Need I remind you that the whole reason we're doing this -" she lowered her voice to barely a whisper - "is so we can become animagi _without_ people knowing? If I have to drop this because the rumors get out of hand… do you really want to figure it out on your own? Not to mention those hints you've been dropping to Grey _must_ realise that you're in on it too." _Come on,_ Oswin thought, _you know being convincing isn't my strong suit._ Draco grumbled and sat taller in his chair.

"Look," he said quietly, so only Oswin could hear. "It's really not that complicated. Just get her alone, tell her what you know, and imply that you might tell someone."

"Yes, but how do I even get her alone?" Oswin asked in frustration. "She's always with her stupid friends."

"No, she's not," Draco said, as though it were obvious.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you remember when I followed Grey around for a month?"

"It was like a week at most, but yes," Oswin responded, rolling her eyes.

"The point is," Draco continued, "That everyday she leaves lunch early to exchange her old library books for new ones. By herself."

"Yikes. Every day?" Oswin said, raising her eyebrows.

"I don't know; I guess she's a fast reader." Draco shrugged. "Does it matter? You know what to do, so go do it."

"Fine, fine," Oswin agreed reluctantly. _Time for the most perilous human interaction in my life so far._

xxxxxxxxxxx

The next day, Oswin discretely watched Grey all throughout lunch. Grey got up and bid her friends an early farewell, just as Draco had said she would, and Oswin followed shortly after. She followed Grey from a short distance until they reached the entrance of the library.

"Beatrice!" Oswin called. "Wait up!" Beatrice stopped abruptly and whipped around to face Oswin. She began to shift from foot to foot and couldn't look Oswin in the eyes as she approached her.

"Oh… erm… hi, Oswin," Beatrice mumbled awkwardly.

"Hi," Oswin said. "Look I've thought a lot about what you said and… I think you're right."

"Really?" Beatrice looked into Oswin's eyes hopefully.

"Yeah, I'm really too young for this stuff," Oswin said, sighing. "If I ever become an animagus, it'll be some time from now."

"That's great," Beatrice said. "I really think you're making the right choice here."

"Thank you, Beatrice."

"But if I ever think you might still be trying to do it, I will have to report it."

"Beatrice-"

"I know you don't want to get in trouble," Beatrice said desperately. "But isn't a small punishment early on better than a potential lifetime of pain and… disfigurement?"

"Yeah, you're right," Oswin conceded. "Of course you are. But you really shouldn't worry about me. I mean things must be stressful enough for you. What with your father and all."

"What?" Beatrice said, clearly shocked. "What do you mean?"

"Oh I just mean because of the whole," Oswin leaned in and whispered to be sure that only Beatrice could hear her. " _Embezzlement_ thing." Oswin moved back again.

"What?!" Beatrice exclaimed. "How do you even know-"

"I know people, Bea," Oswin said simply. "And people talk."

"Just what are you trying to do?" Beatrice snapped at Oswin.

"Nothing," Oswin said innocently. "I'm not here to judge. I'm just saying, you don't need to worry about me. You have your _own_ problems to work though. Don't even think about what I'm up to. Understand?" Beatrice paused for several seconds, just staring, wide-eyed, at Oswin.

"Yes."

"Great! I'll see you later."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is short. I got to this point in the story and just felt like if I made this chapter longer it would make that last scene lose its punch. Tell me what you think though. I'd love to hear your opinion, positive or negative. This chapter went through a lot less editing than usual. I also really want to know what you think is going to happen in Oswin's future. I'll update really soon. (Also, I know this chapter is titled differently than the others, I just couldn't resist the reference. Even though it doesn't really make sense.)**_


	13. Applause and Anticipation

_**Author's Note: On November 4th, 2018, I posted the first chapter of this story onto . Now here I am, a whole year later, to post the final one. At least for this installment (more about that at the end of the chapter). Please let me know what you thought about this chapter, and the fic overall, by leaving a review. It means so much to me and really inspires me to keep writing.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I own nothing owned by J.K. Rowling.**_

* * *

 **Oswin**

Draco Malfoy got detention. Oswin felt as though anyone with half a brain could have predicted a similar outcome. That was the reason Oswin felt very little sympathy for Draco on Sunday morning.

"What I don't understand," Oswin said in an exasperated tone. "Is why you didn't go to Professor McGonagall about your so-called concerns. What was the point of getting up in the middle of the night to go after them yourself?"

"I needed proof," Draco grumbled. "But that old hag wouldn't even let me show her."

"Didn't you have the letter from the other Weasley?" Oswin asked. "That would've been proof. Why didn't you show that to her?" Draco's ears went pink.

"Well…" Draco trailed off. Oswin raised an eyebrow.

"I can see I've got you stumped," she said dryly. "Whatever. It won't really work now. It'll seem forged." Draco huffed. _Ugh,_ Oswin thought. _I guess now I have to do that_ friend _thing and try to cheer him up._ "Hey… look on the bright side."

"You did not seriously just tell me to 'look on the bright side'"

"No, I mean… from what I saw Potter _must_ have been found out."

"What do you mean?"

"Haven't you seen the Gryffindor hourglass?" Oswin asked perplexedly. "It's down over a hundred points since yesterday."

"So what you're saying is," Draco said, perking up. " _I'm_ technically the winner."

"Er…" Oswin shrugged. "I _guess_?"

Draco looked for a moment like he was deep in thought and then sat up straighter, reapplying his relaxed and confident persona. "You know, taking this detention is really a brave sacrifice I'm making to take down the likes of Potter, and I feel like not enough people _get_ that."

 _For the sake of my sanity, I hope you learn to be more subtle in the future,_ Oswin thought. "Whatever. While you indulge in the sensation of twisting narratives to make yourself look better, _I_ am going to indulge in the sensation of not having rumors spread about me."

"Good job," Draco said, not having to ask what she was implying.

"Thanks," Oswin said uncertainly, taken off guard by the genuine compliment. "I'm just glad we'll really be able to get started on our project without the extra distractions."

"We can start this summer," Draco said in a business-like tone. "It's a good thing most of the things we need are actually very common items."

"No kidding."

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

From that day forward, the Slytherin students began thanking Harry Potter for losing so many points for Gryffindor. Oswin didn't really care about the house cup, preferring to focus on the upcoming exams. However, Draco cared a _lot_ about the house cup and had taken to being very obnoxious about it. This alone made Oswin wish the year would end at a much quicker rate, if only so Draco would start talking about things she actually cared about again. Draco's detention came and went and eventually the time for taking exams had come upon them.

Oswin performed acceptably in History of Magic and Charms, but was much more pleased with how her Potions and Transfiguration exams went. She had struggled a bit during her Defence Against the Dark Arts exam, but was confident she had passed. Draco gave no indication that he had any level of difficulty with any of the exams, but Oswin hadn't expected otherwise. If he did struggle, she doubted he would tell her about it.

The night after her last exam, Oswin sat in the little room in her briefcase, using her typewriter to write up the procedure for becoming an animagus. She had done this several times before, but writing something several times helped her remember it. Every time she wrote a new version, she would burn the previous one. Even though she had been writing them in Latin, she wanted to be as sure as she could be that no one would find a copy of it. Oswin left her box, locked it, and left the girl's dormitory to sit in the common room. She tossed the older piece of writing into the fire and sighed. When she had finished dealing with Grey, she had felt a great sense of relief, but now she felt anxious again. _There's still so much left to do_. She thought as she stared into the fire. _I can tell I'm only on the brink of a very long, difficult path._ After another moment, Oswin reentered the girl's dormitory, flopped down onto her bed, and drifted off to sleep.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

Oswin walked tiredly down to breakfast the day after exams. She brought her empty journal with her. She had never been good at keeping up with journaling, but she decided she might as well doodle to at least make use of the pages. Although she was anxious about what was to come, she was glad to have a week off. When she got the the Great Hall, she sat down near where Draco was gossiping with his friends. To Oswin's surprise, Draco turned to talk to her.

"Did you hear?" he asked her, "Potter's got himself into the hospital wing."

"How'd he do that?" Oswin asked curiously. Draco scrunched his eyebrows together.

"I'm not really sure. Something about him _dueling_ Professor Quirrell."

"How peculiar." Oswin opened her notebook to draw, but then she got an idea. If there was one thing she had learned that year, it was that information was immensely valuable. At the top of the first page, she wrote, 'Harry Potter'. Then, starting on the first line,

'Potter was placed in the hospital wing

a week before summer break.

… Dueling teachers?'

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

Over the next few days, more information became clear about Harry Potter's hospital visit. For one, it seemed that Professor Quirrell had been a follower of Voldemort. For another, the professor had apparently been trying to steal the Philosopher's Stone. When Potter had discovered what Quirrell was doing, the professor had attacked him. At least, that was what Oswin was told had happened. By the time the end-of-year feast came around, everyone was talking about what had happened between Harry Potter and Professor Quirrell. More and more details came to light, and they were becoming more and more specific. The entire story was making all of Gryffindor house very popular by association. _But popularity can't win back house points._ Oswin thought. _And Slytherin is well in the lead for the house cup._ Although she would never admit it, Oswin _was_ starting to become interested in the house cup, mostly because winning seemed like a real possibility. She could just imagine how excited her parents would be when they found out that her house had won the cup in her first year. Except that isn't what happened, because Gryffindor won _just enough_ points at the very last minute to push them past Slytherin. Oswin had to admit it seemed suspicious, but she tried to push down the sting regardless. There were going to be more important things to do and worry about. She couldn't let this disappointment distract her.

Oswin got onto the Hogwarts Express at the end of the year feeling more tired than she had been in her entire life. Despite everything, the idea of trying to relax seemed more exhausting than working, so she was glad she would have homework to do over the break. As the train pulled out of the station, Oswin's mind wandered to all she wanted to accomplish and everything that stood in her way. Part of her was anxious, but another part of her was sure she could pull through. She had to.

* * *

 _ **Author's note: Well, there you have it. I hope you had as much fun reading this fic as I had writing it. As of my publishing this chapter, I'm not quite done with this story. Here's a quick breakdown of what will happen next:**_

 _ **1\. I'm going to go through all the chapters I've published so far and re-edit them. I'll fix any grammar, formatting, or continuity errors and just generally improve the overall quality. Only then will I mark this story as completed.**_

 _ **2\. There will be a sequel to this fic. I'm already in the planning stages, but you probably won't see any chapters for a few months. School is really intense right now and I don't have a lot of writing time.**_

 _ **3\. In the meantime, I might publish some oneshots or dabble in other fandoms before I commit myself to the sequel for this, which could be pretty long.**_

 _ **Again, please leave a review with advise and stuff. It really does help me improve.**_


End file.
